April 21 kicked off National Infertility Awareness Week and Today show meteorologist Dylan Dreyer bravely decided to signify it by revealing on Monday’s show that she suffered a miscarriage after struggling to get pregnant with her second child.

She and her husband, Brian Fichera shared that they started trying for a second baby nine months after having their son, Calvin. After trying for six months, the 37-year-old decided to go to the doctor to make sure everything was OK.

“The results showed that I have a very low egg count. Instead of having an egg count of a 37-year-old, I’m more like mid-40s,” Dreyer explains.

Dreyer’s OB/GYN recommended her to an IVF specialist, where she discovered that her emergency C-section caused major scarring in her uterus, leaving her uterus two-thirds closed shut. After having surgery to remove the scar tissue, Dreyer says she got pregnant immediately. “It’s the moment you wait for,” she said in tears.

Sadly, five weeks later, Dreyer woke up to massive bleeding.“I’m devastated, and I have to go to work on the Today show and be happy and smiling and pretend like nothing’s wrong,” she shares. “We push [emotions] down and get through the show.” After the show, an ultrasound at the doctor revealed that the baby was still in there and it was fluke bleeding. But after a few more days of bleeding, Dreyer went to the doctor again and was told that she had lost the baby.

Dreyer decided use her platform to open about her struggles to bring awareness to infertility and miscarriage. “[My husband and I] agreed that we need more awareness. I just want people to know that, yeah, I’m kind of going through it with you,” she says, adding that she will start IVF if she and her husband do not conceive naturally.

Watching Dreyer bravely talk about her baby plans in front of the world, and more specifically her NBC bosses, is empowering to see. Indeed, Dreyer joins a new guard of women pushing forward when it comes to making it clear that having ambition and having children shouldn’t have to be opposites. There’s Rent the Runway CEO Jennifer Hyman whose company received a $1 billion valuation while she’s pregnant. Michelle Kennedy, CEO/founder of Peanut, a match-making app for moms, has also used her platform to openly talk about her pregnancy in the midst of running a company.

But while those in the C-suite are finally opening up, the reality is that it’s still not as easy for all working parents. Even though the Pregnancy Discrimination Act protects against discrimination in the workplace, according to a February 2019 report in New York Times, the number of pregnancy discrimination claims filed annually with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has been rising for two decades and is near an all-time high.

Personally speaking, I hid my pregnancy for nearly six months in 2017, worried that I wouldn’t look dedicated enough at my high-paced job, or that my job would be at risk. When I finally did share my happy news with my boss, a fairly new executive at my old company, I realized that I had nothing to worry about, as he was fully supportive of me and my needs.

For me, it was proof that the tide was changing. Since then, I’m pleased to see more women feeling no shame when it comes to talking about their dreams, career and family wise. Talking openly about your baby plans to your bosses is not easy—it says you are going to be having a new set of priorities in your life—and that doesn’t necessarily mean that they are competing.

Chloe Melas, a reporter for CNN, has also been vocal about her own fertility struggles on her public platform. She says it’s empowering to see other women doing the same.

“I really believe it’s so important to be open about your struggles, even when it’s uncomfortable because there’s a whole tribe of men and women out there that are going through the same things,” she tells us. “It’s already difficult enough to juggle motherhood and work but when you throw infertility into the mix, it can feel insurmountable. By sharing my darkest moments I have found that so many women are going through what I am and it makes everything feel more conquerable.”

Melas, who is now expecting her second child via IVF, is proud to be a working mom and represent the new wave of millennial moms who are pushing for more and not expecting less in the workplace due to pregnancy.

“It’s so great to see women like Dylan or high level executives talking about their fertility struggles because this is not a status issue,” she says. “This is something that all women could experience, no matter your age, your job, where you live, your socio-economic status. By being open about struggles like this, it transcends everything and unites us as human beings talking about the most fundamental part of nature—creating life.”

It’s important to know that in speaking out about these topics in the workplace, such as suffering a miscarriage, that you also know about your rights. Many women are accustomed to putting on a smile and going about their days even while experiencing a miscarriage—like Dreyer did—but under FMLA, the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993, a pregnant woman can take FMLA leave for incapacity due to pregnancy, for prenatal care, to recover from childbirth or for other serious conditions related to pregnancy, such as miscarriage.

“Know your company’s policy and what you’re entitled to,” Jamie Ladge, an associate professor of management at Northeastern University who researches women and the workplace and author of the upcoming book, Maternal Optimism. “Realistically, you can talk to your boss or someone at HR, and explain that you need to take a few days off. If your company doesn’t qualify for FMLA, see about taking sick time to care for yourself.”

AMG/Parade Digital

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